Prevalence of radiographic changes in yearling and 2-year-old Quarter Horses intended for cutting.

The research conducted examines the prevalence of radiographic changes in young Quarter Horses being trained for cutting, with a major focus on changes in the stifles, tarsi, carpi, and fetlocks.

Methodology

• The methodology involved obtaining radiographs from a radiograph repository and a private farm. These were taken from yearlings and 2-year-old Quarter Horses.
• The data from the radiographs focused on four areas of the horse’s body- the carpi, tarsi, fetlocks, and stifles.
• These areas were evaluated and any radiographic changes were categorized based on type and location.
• The frequency of the changes was then calculated, and comparisons were made between the 2 age groups operated.

Results

• Results showed that out of the 458 horses which were included in the study, 408 (89.1%) had radiographic changes.
• The majority of these changes were found in the tarsi (304, 69.4%), followed by stifles (202, 44.5%), hind fetlocks (155 of 355, 43.7%), fore fetlocks (131 of 361, 36.3%) and carpi (27 of 342, 7.9%).
• Specifically, for the horses with stifle changes, a whopping 93.1% had changes in the medial femoral condyle.
• The results also showed a significant difference between the age groups for changes on the distal intermediate ridge of the tibia (DIRT), hindlimb middle phalanx (P2) osteophytes and proximal tibial osteophytes.

Conclusions

• The researchers concluded that there is a high prevalence of radiographic changes in presale survey radiographs, particularly in the stifles and tarsi of young Quarter Horses intended for cutting.
• Given the findings, veterinarians who conduct presale radiographs at cutting horse sales are advised to anticipate a high prevalence of radiographic changes in this population of horses.
• The researchers indicate that the clinical relevance of these radiographic changes is a subject of ongoing investigation.